Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act | Peabody Museum of Archaeology & Ethnology

NAGPRA

Image: Gift presented to the Peabody Museum from the Maine Tribes in
acknowledgement of repatriation during ceremonial transfer. Sept, 2021.

A red and white woven basket shines in the center of the frame against a black background.

Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA)

NAGPRA requires the Peabody and other museums, in consultation with Tribes, to identify and return Native American human remains, funerary objects, objects of cultural patrimony, and sacred objects. The Peabody has a dedicated staff who work on the implementation of NAGPRA and the ethical and moral imperative it represents.

Federal Register Notices

NAGPRA at the Peabody: Past, Present, and Future

Consultation visit, Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe, 2016.

Four people sit around a table in white lab coats surrounding a long staff laid flat on the table. A person all the way to the left holds their hands up as if telling a story. Others take notes.

Getting Started

Consultation Visit, Puyallup Tribe, August 2025.

group of staff members and tribal visitors standing on the museum's front steps

Data Visualizations

A gradient map of the United States, outlined by state with percentages on each state

Woodbury Collection

The Peabody Museum stewards a collection of hair clippings, including clippings from Native American children attending U.S. Indian Boarding Schools, assembled by anthropologist George Edward Woodbury in the 1930s and donated to the museum in 1935. The Peabody will return the hair to lineal descendants and Tribal Nations through NAGPRA.

Learn more about this collection

Peabody Museum NAGPRA Advisory Committee

The museum’s NAGPRA Advisory Committee advises the Peabody Museum Director on issues and decisions in regard to the implementation of NAGPRA, as well as providing counsel to the Peabody Faculty Executive Committee and the Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences.

Learn more

Four people sit around a table, three wearing lab coats. One person on the far right raises their hands to point at their head, as if explaining the use of an object. — Consultation visit, Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma, 2018.

Duty of Care for NAGPRA Collections

On January 12, 2024 the Department of the Interior introduced updated regulations for the implementation of NAGPRA. These regulations include new “duty of care” requirements that require the Museum to care for, safeguard, and preserve ancestors, funerary belongings and cultural items. The Museum must consult with Tribal Nations and make a reasonable and good faith effort to incorporate and accommodate Native American traditional knowledge in these activities. Free, prior and informed consent is required prior to allowing any exhibition of, access to, and research on ancestors, funerary items, and cultural items.

In line with the Museum’s broader commitment to the ethical stewardship of all collections in our care, the Museum had policies already in place that were aligned with the new regulations.

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Frequently Asked Questions